Quake Gives New Meaning To A Young Man's Mission

By Kari Huus, msnbc.com

It was faith that landed Patrick Hiltbrand in the path of a tsunami last week, but arguably it was also his faith that got him out —as he survived the deluge in the upper floor of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the small town of Tagajo.  Despite the ordeal he has survived, he so far has no intention of leaving Japan soon, and that too has to do with his religious convictions.

“Right now, I’m here in Japan for two years to serve God,” said the 20-year-old speaking from a mission in Sapporo. He is determined to return to the disaster zone to help with recovery, but awaits instruction: “My (mission) leaders are receiving guidance from God,” he said.

For members of the Mormon church, going on “mission” is a rite of passage. At any given moment there are about 52,000 Mormon missionaries working around the world — most of them between 19 and 21 years old. In order to remain focused of their religious work, they are asked not to watch television, follow the news or call their families and friends. On their one day off a week, they can write letters or email.

Hiltbrand, from Pocatello, Idaho, is the third son in the family to go on mission, but the first to be sent overseas. Being chosen for Japan was "beyond his wildest dreams," said his mom, Corrie Hiltbrand. He had been evangelizing in Sendai area of Japan for about 15 months when the quake struck.

Dressed in the standard issue white-shirt-and-tie, he and his “companion” Yuji Aiura — Mormon missionaries always travel in pairs — had arrived by bicycle to a small restaurant in Tagajo, a river town about two miles from the ocean.

They were discussing the power of God with two local Japanese when the shaking began. They ignored it at first says Hiltbrand — there are so many small quakes in this region — but not for long.

The growing fury of the rumbling drove them to take shelter under a table. Then they decided to run outside.

“There was a loud bang and everything was moving in every direction,” Hiltbrand says. “Cars were rocking on the street.”

When it stopped, the two missionaries jumped on their bikes and rode to check on their apartment, then headed to the Mormon church in Tagajo, dodging newly created crevices and open manholes.

Along the way, Hiltbrand registered the shock and fear on faces all around him, wracking his brain for the right course of action.

“As we started toward the church I turned to my companion and said ‘our job today is to help people be happy as we can,'” said Hiltbrand. “I tried to smile and say hi to everyone.”

It is in Hiltbrand's character  to try to cheer people, said his mother. She describes him as tough in the face of adversity, outgoing and enthusiastic about whatever task is at hand. Right before leaving on mission, the electronics student needed to make some money—and the only job he could get was standing on a corner wearing a big sign for a local pizza joint.

“He stood on a street corner flipping and spinning that sign. He never stopped moving,” said Corrie Hiltbrand. “He said, ‘If this is what I have to do for my job, then I’m going to go all out,’ and that’s what Patrick does.”

Any illusion that the disaster was over quickly passed as traffic built—with cars heading inland toward Sendai. Then police and fire vehicle sirens began blaring tsunami warnings.

Hiltbrand and Aiura climbed to the second story of the church, a building that is raised 4 to 5 feet off the ground.

The watched out the window as the water level rose rapidly, aided by the river that wraps around the town—and sucked their bicycles into a torrent, along with cars and debris.

Water began pouring through the church’s mail slot in the door of the first floor.

“From the second floor it sounded like a waterfall,” said Hiltbrand. “I went downstairs, and as I watched it coming in … the glass on the door shattered and water came pouring in.”

The water rose to about four feet before it started to subside he said.

It was 20 hours before the young missionaries could venture outside. They were not able to go to the emergency meeting site designated by their mission because they were isolated on the wrong side of the swollen river. There was no cell service to get instruction from higher-ups at the church.

“It was a real ‘what do I do’ moment,” Hiltbrand said in a matter-of-fact voice. “(Aiura) said, ‘We need to get to Sendai,'” about 20 miles away.

They trudged through standing water, navigating through the piles of cars and wreckage. Japanese residents were also wading through the remaining water, some carrying elderly family members on their backs.

A local church member driving toward Tagajo from Sendai spotted Hiltbrand and Aiura as he neared the town. He turned around them and drove them to the unscathed mission in Sendai city, about 24 hours after the quake. 

The church has since moved all 200 of its young evangelists from Tokyo and the Sendai area to missions they believe to be a safe distance from the radiation leak at the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant.

Hiltbrand is now at a mission in Sapporo — on the northern island of Hokkaido. On Friday he and other evacuees were getting health evaluations and briefings on the full scope of the disaster, including the radiation leaking from Fukushima — a crisis that has prompted the U.S. government to offer U.S. citizens evacuation from Japan.

Hiltbrand said he has no thought of going back to Utah early. And his mother said she is 100 percent supportive of his plans—even after a tense and prayer-filled 24 hours of uncertainty about her son’s survival.

“(To ask) for him to come home never even went through our minds,” she said. “Patrick is where he has planned to be all his life…. We knew he was where needed to be and when we heard from him that he had been protected.  And we know that he will be protected.”

For his part, Hiltbrand is itching to get back to the disaster zone.

“I really want to be in Tagajo helping people,” he says. “I have many friends in Tagajo and I don’t know how they are. I don’t know how they will clean it all up and I want to help.”

But, as senior leaders of the LDS church told msnbc.com earlier in the week, the missionaries, although enthusiastic, may be more of a burden than a help at this stage.

So Hiltbrand waits until the church says it is OK for him to change his mission — from saving souls to salvaging lives.

“All I know is I’m now in Sapporo because I’m supposed to be,” he said.

The Family Can Be Eternal -

A talk given by someone in the Bernal Ward Relief Society, San Jose, CA.  A good one that I’m glad they shared!

Good Morning Sisters -

I have to start by sharing a story I have probably have shared before but I have to again. - This story started over 36 years ago when my sister died at a very young age of 19. I was pregnant with our second daughter Stacy, it really was a very hard time for my entire family. We were not members of any church at that time and we all felt really lost. When you are not a member of the church you hear all the “stuff” when you lose a loved one. Like they are in a better place, they aren’t suffering anymore, or someday you will see them again, all the things we say now but really, they are just empty words when there is no faith behind them. Little did I know that 21 years later after her passing and exactly to the day 56 years after my Grandfather had passed I would learn a lesson I will always be grateful for. Stacy was being baptized and we were there as non members, not knowing anything about her new religion. As she was getting dressed after her baptism, we watched a video about how Family’s can be together forever. I watched and I knew I had to learn more. The spirit was so strong in that room. I didn’t know it then, but Heavenly Father had a plan for us. He was planting the seed. So to make a long story short because of that video, I stand here today 17 years later.

The Eternal family begins with Heavenly Parents. That is our goal in this life, to be just like them. In the Proclamation of the Family we read - 3rd paragraph down - have someone read.

So from the very beginning God established the family and made it eternal. We are partners with God as parents to bring children into this world and teach them while they are here on earth. So to do it as God intended we need to follow life as God intended. I will use the example of a recipe.

As we go through life, it’s like baking a cake.
You have to have a plan - God’s plan is your recipe
You have the tools - knowledge of the gospel, The Prophet, Temple - which would be having a pan, mixer, oven.  You have to follow the instructions or be obedient to the commandments we have been given, or you won’t get a cake.  You have to have patience and the blessings will come- wait while baking and then cooling
You have to enjoy - Eternal Life - You have your cake and get to eat it too!

President David O. McKay said, 

                      “With all my heart I believe that the best place to prepare for
                             … eternal life is in the home”

We learn at home everything we will need in the out side world. What do we learn?

At home we learn as a family - self-control, sacrifice, loyalty, and the value of work. We learn to love, share, and to serve one another.

The home is where we prepare ourselves for living in mortality and in death. Because we believe and understand that there is a life after death not just for us but also for our family. Depending on our individual obedience to the laws, ordinances, and commandments of God, each mortal can have the blessings of attaining eternal life and return to live in the presence of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and be reunited with our families for eternity.
Its always a growing process. As we learn and study the gospel we can then teach the gospel, when we pray we are setting the example to our children to pray, when we obey the commandments we are setting the example for our children to obey the commandments. They watch us when we don’t even think they are watching us.

How many of you have been to a non-LDS wedding? What is one of the biggest difference in their vows that they make to each other and the ones we make when we are sealed in the Temple?

Till Death do We part!

Robert and I had one of these types of wedding. We never thought anything about it, because that was the only thing available to us then, but as the years went by and we became closer and more in love with each other, we actually would laugh and make a joke to each other that the only way you’ll get rid of me now is to die.

After being sealed in the temple, now we joke about how you’ll never get rid of me. It won’t do you any good now, even to die.

We joke about it, but what a wonderful blessing. Death can not separate us now as long as we both keep our covenants with Heavenly Father.

This month’s Ensign has a wonderful article in it “Defending the Family in a Troubled World” by Elder Bruce Porter of the Seventy. I urge all to read it.

Satan is really attacking the family big time. The family is in crisis. We live in a day when the love of your own children is not happening. The average traditional family is not the traditional family I grew up with. We live a society that thinks evil is good and good is evil. Anything that is wholesome is mocked and made fun of. Fatherless or Motherless homes are ok, abortion is ok, pornography won’t hurt anyone. There is a estimated 6.6 million cohabitating couples now so they say the divorce rate is down, but people just aren’t getting married so we have no idea how many “divorced families” are out there. Over 40% of births are now out of wedlock.

Life’s Recipe is upside down right now. Everyone is wanting to enjoy life before planning and preparing for it in the right steps.
Unfortunately to many children are being brought into this world in unloving and in unwanted situations, leaving a giant hole in the family structure.

Sisters we are such a small part of the world, but we should not underestimate the power of our example to all of those we come in contact with. We can invite others who might be seeking a better way. The Lord expects us to do that. Even if it means that we might be made fun of or shunned by others. Just like in the vision of the tree of life. We need to ignore the jeering and the laughing.

Regardless of what the future holds, we will be given the power to save our children from the darkness around them. Its going to take work and sacrifices but with God as our partner we will succeed. We can make our homes a refuge from the outside world.

What are some of the ways we can do this?

1. Have family prayer every night and morning. Pray together as husband and wife. 3Nephi 18:21

2. Teach children the gospel every week in family home evening.

3. Study scriptures regularly as a family.

4. Do things together as a family, such as work projects, outings, and decision making.

5. Learn to be kind, patient, long-suffering, and charitable.

6. Attend Church meetings regularly.

7. Follow the counsel of the Lord. “Organize your selves; prepare every needful thing; and establish a house, even a house of prayer, a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning, a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God.”

8. Keep a family history, perform temple work together, and receive the sealing ordinances of the temple.

Have you seen the difference in your family when you are doing the family prayer, family scripture reading, family meal times and family home evenings, verses when you slip from doing these things?
In closing Life is eternal. I know that I have Heavenly parents and other loved ones waiting for me to return to them on the other side. Doing their temple work and sealing our families together forever is the one thing I can do to repay them for all that they have done for me in this life. The Lord has provided the way. His spirit will keep us strong even if the trails of this life get worse. We have that promise his spirit will guide, direct, and comfort us. We are so blessed to have this knowledge. I am trying so hard to keep my recipe for life together, I someday want to have cake and eat it to.
End with Testimony
WHEN YOU THOUGHT I WASN'T LOOKING

A message every adult should read because children

are watching you and doing as you do, not as you say.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you hang my

first painting on the refrigerator, and I immediately

wanted to paint another one.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you feed a

stray cat, and I learned that it was good to be kind

to animals.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make my

favorite cake for me, and I learned that the little

things can be the special things in life.

When you thought I wasn't looking I heard you say a

prayer, and I knew that there is a God I could always

talk to, and I learned to trust in Him.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you make a

meal and take it to a friend who was sick, and I

learned that we all have to help take care of each other.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw you take care

of our house and everyone in it, and I learned we have

to take care of what we are given.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw how you

handled your responsibilities, even when you didn't

feel good, and I learned that I would have to be

responsible when I grow up.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw tears come

from your eyes, and I learned that sometimes things

hurt, but it's all right to cry.

When you thought I wasn't looking I saw that you

cared, and I wanted to be everything that I could be..

When you thought I wasn't looking I learned most of

life's lessons that I need to know to be a good and

productive person when I grow up.

When you thought I wasn't looking I looked at you and

wanted to say,' Thanks for all the things I saw when

you thought I wasn't looking.'

I AM SENDING THIS TO ALL OF THE PEOPLE I KNOW

WHO DO SO MUCH FOR OTHERS,

BUT THINK THAT NO ONE EVER SEES.

LITTLE EYES SEE A LOT ..


Each of us (parent, grandparent, aunt, uncle, teacher, friend)

influences the life of a child.

How will you touch the life of someone today?
Live simply. Love generously. Care deeply.

Speak kindly.

Leave the rest to God.

Obey the Law of the Land - No Matter What?

The 12th article of faith states, 

                 “We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and
                   magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.”

Many today have interpreted this to mean that it is a part of our faith that we are to obey any and all governmental laws and regulations no matter their compatibility with the laws of God.

However, this paradigm does not take into account the Lords definition of law, as well as precedence set by ancient as well as modern (including the author of said article) Prophets.

In the Doctrine & Covenants, section 98 verses 5-7 lays out what “the law” is:

                And that law of the land which is constitutional, supporting that principle 
                of freedom in maintaining rights and privileges, belongs to all mankind, 
                and is justifiable before me. Therefore, I, the Lord, justify you, and your 
                brethren of my church, in befriending that law which is the constitutional 
                law of the land; And as pertaining to law of man, whatsoever is more or 
                less than this, cometh of evil.

Any law that is not Constitutional or fails in “supporting that principle of freedom in maintaining rights and privileges” is evil. In verse 11 the Lord tells us what we should do with such evil when He says, “And I give unto you a commandment, that ye shall forsake all evil”.  Therefore, according to an actual revelation, the Lord tells us to forsake any laws that are unconstitutional or that violate principles of freedom. This conclusion is also supported by several statements from modern prophets Quotes

In addition to this commandment from the Lord in this the last dispensation, we have precedence that reveals this as a universal principle.

Here are just a few examples:

We all remember the Sunday School lesson about Daniel and the lions den.  Why was Daniel, a Prophet of God, sent to the lions den?  He was sent there by the government because he violated the “law of the land”!

1. Daniel knew it was against the law to pray to God  Dan 6:10
2. Daniel openly defied the law
   

We should also remember Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, the three Hebrews that were sent into the fiery furnace because they disobeyed the “law of the land” that went against the law of God.  Dan 3:12-30

Let’s skip now to modern examples:

Polygamy as practiced by Joseph Smith and contemporary apostles was against “the law of the land” in every single state they were in.

John Taylor said, “We believe in … loyalty to our country, but when they enact laws, forbidding us the free exercise of our religion, we cannot submit. God is greater than the United States; and when the government conflicts with Heaven, we will be ranged under the banner of Heaven against the government…  If the United States say different the Saints cannot obey it. … [W]e will worship God according to the dictates of our own conscience.” (1/6/1880)

Heber J. Grant: “No matter what restrictions we are placed under by men, our only consistent course is to keep the commandments of God. We should, in this regard, place ourselves in the same position as that of the three Hebrews who were cast into the fiery furnace.” (4/5/1885)

George Q. Cannon: “I admit that those raising children by plural wives are not complying with man-made laws, but in the sight of God they are not sinning, as there is no sin in it.” (Reed Smoot Hearings 1:9)

Wilford Woodruff: “God says, “We shall be damned if we do not obey the law.” Congress says, “We shall be damned if we do.” It places us precisely in the same position that it did the Hebrews in the fiery furnace, and Daniel in the den of lions. … Our enemies have pursued the same course … and made it a law of offense to obey one of the laws of our God. Now who shall we obey? God or man? My voice is that we obey God.” (4/21/1879)

Apostles Penrose & Richards wrote a letter to John Taylor stating: “We then say, we consider the law of God superior to the law of the State, and if we have to break the law of the State to keep the law of God, we will stand by the consequences.” (2/16/1887)

The First Presidency: “God is superior to governments and courts. But he tells his Church to befriend the constitutional law of the land. If it is not constitutional, He says it comes of evil. It must support the principle of freedom in maintaining rights and privileges; if not, it comes of evil. Who is the Lord directing? His Church. Whatever is contrary to the freedom guaranteed by the Constitution, which includes not mere belief but the “free exercise” of religion, He does not command His people to obey, but says they shall do His will.” (First Presidency 7/7/1886)

John Taylor: “I defy the United States. I will obey the will of God. These are my sentiments, and all of you who sympathize with me in this position raise your right hand.” (1/6/1880)

It is dangerous to take one statement, or verse, or part of a verse in a vacuum, with no context.  That is how we get all the false creeds of men that lead to the great apostasy.  Prophets, both ancient and modern, are clear on this principle.

God’s law is supreme, and all laws that violate His are to be “forsaken”.


About Ezra Taylor
Ezra Taylor has appeared in national (Fox news, USA Today), as well as several other regional publications. Ezra also writes for several freedom oriented publications, has been a radio talk show host and is a grassroots organizer.
View all posts by Ezra Taylor

A Testimony of the Book of Mormon

Oh my gosh!  This is a very wonderful read . . . You will enjoy it.  Take the time . . .

I remember reading this professors explanation of this event, and it mirrors this account!

Die Boek van Mormon

By John M. Pontius

I was searching through my books in storage a few days ago and came across a first edition of the Book of Mormon in Afrikaans. I served a mission in South African from 1971 to 1973. It was an interesting and challenging experience. I attended the Stake Conference in Johannesburg on May 14, 1972 when the new translation of the Book of Mormon into Afrikaans (Die Boek van Mormon) was presented. It was an electric moment. People wept. Some had waited all of their lifetimes to read the Book of Mormon in Afrikaans. Many people had learned English for the sole purpose of reading this scripture. The Spirit was strong among us as we rejoiced.

Remembering back more than 50 years, I can still remember Professor Felix Mynhardt [not a member of our church] as he spoke of his experience in translating that sacred book. I will retell it as best I can recall.

Professor Mynhardt was invited to come to the stand and speak about his experience in translating the Book of Mormon. He recounted how he had been given a gift of languages from God from his youth. He said that he was fluent in many languages, including English, Afrikaans, Hebrew and Egyptian, as well as many others. He was presently employed as a language professor.

He said he had been praying that the Lord would give him some task, some divinely important task, that would justify his having this gift of language from God. He said in about 1970 that he had visited with a group of Mormon leaders, who sought to commission him to translate the Book of Mormon from English into Afrikaans. He said that he knew of the Book of Mormon from his religions studies, and his initial reaction was that he did not want to be involved in translating it.

However, that evening, as he prayed upon his knees, as was his habit, he said the Spirit of the Lord convicted him. The message was something on the order of, “You asked me for a great, divinely inspired task of translation, I sent it to you in the form of translating the Book of Mormon, and you declined.”

Professor Mynhardt said he could not sleep through the night because he knew that translating the Book of Mormon would get him into trouble with his university, which was owned and operated by the Dutch Reformed Church.

When morning came he telephoned Elder Clark to inform him that he would begin the translation immediately. He stood at the pulpit and described the experience.

He said, “I never begin translating a book at the beginning. Writing style usually changes through a book, and becomes more consistent toward the middle. Accordingly, I opened to a random place in the middle of the Book of Mormon, and began translating.”

He said, “I was startled by the obvious fact that the Book of Mormon was not authored in English.

He said, “It became immediately apparent that what I was reading was a translation into English from some another language. The sentence structure was wrong for native English. The word choices were wrong, as were many phrases.”

He said, “How many times has an Englishman said or written, ‘And it came to pass?’” We all laughed, and knew he was right, of course.

He continued, “When I realized this, I knew that I had to find the original language, and translate it back into the original language, or a similar language to the original, and then proceed to translate it into Afrikaans. He listed a half-dozen languages he tried, all of which did not accommodate the strange sentence structure found in the Book of Mormon.

He said, “I finally tried Egyptian, and to my complete surprise, I found that the Book of Mormon translated flawlessly into Egyptian, not modern, but ancient Egyptian. I found that some nouns were missing from Egyptian, so I added Hebrew nouns where Egyptian did not provide the word or phrase. I chose Hebrew because both languages existed in the same place anciently.”

“I had no idea at that time why the Book of Mormon was once written in Egyptian, but I can tell you without any doubt, that this book was at one point written entirely in Egyptian.” I heard him say this over and over. Then, he said, “Imagine my utter astonishment when I turned to chapter one, verse one and began my actual translation and came to verse two, where Nephi describes that he was writing in the language of the Egyptians, with the learning of the Jews!”

He said, “I knew by the second verse, that this was no ordinary book, that it was not the writings of Joseph Smith, but that it was of ancient origin and was in fact scripture. I could have saved myself months of work if I had just begun at the beginning. Nobody but God, working through a prophet of God, in this case Nephi, would have included a statement of the language he was writing in.

Consider, how many documents written in English, include the phrase, “we are writing in English!” It is unthinkable and absolute proof of the inspired origins of this book. He paused, then noted, “I am one of the few people in the world that is fluent in ancient Egyptian. I am perhaps the only person fluent in ancient Egyptian who is also fluent in Afrikaans and English. And I know for a fact, that I am the only person alive who could have translated this book first into Egyptian, and then into Afrikaans. If your church ever needs an Egyptian translation of the Book of Mormon, it is sitting in my office as we speak.” We all laughed.

Professor Mynhardt spoke of many other things regarding the translation of this book, and then said, “I do not know what Joseph Smith was before he translated this book, and I do not know what he was afterward, but while he translated this book, he was a prophet of God! I know he was a prophet! I testify to you that he was a prophet while he brought forth this book! He could have been nothing else! No person in 1827 could have done what he did. The science did not exist. The knowledge of ancient Egyptian did not exist. The knowledge of these ancient times and ancient peoples did not exist. The Book of Mormon is scripture. I hope you realize this.

“I will keep promoting this book as scripture for the remainder of my life – simply because it is scripture, and I know it. I haven’t studied your doctrine or your history since Joseph Smith. The only thing I know about the Mormon religion is that you have authentic, ancient scripture in the Book of Mormon, that your church was begun by a living and true prophet of God, and that all of the world should embrace the Book of Mormon as scripture. It simply can’t be denied.

A Great Story!!

Some you of have already read about this . . . But if you haven’t, it’s a great story!  And a great one to tell to the boys in scouting, too.


Mormon Missionary Saves a Drowning Man

A Mormon missionary who recently worked with congregations in Santa Cruz, CA, has done more than share the Gospel. He’s saved a life. Elder Etimani Faiese is on a two-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, now serving in San Jose. On the morning of Friday, May 18th he and his missionary companion left their apartment dressed in T-shirts and jeans, rather than their customary white shirts and ties. That’s because they were off for a day of community service trimming bushes and cleaning up trash at Lake Cunningham, near the Capitol Expressway and Tully Road in San Jose. Elder Faiese was blowing leaves and debris when the blower ran out of gas, so he headed back to refill it.

Along the way he passed a man who was standing on a rock at the edge of the lake. He heard a sound, turned around and saw that the man was standing in the water. “Are you OK?” he asked. The man didn’t reply, so he hurried on, assuming the man must be fishing. A few minutes later he returned and saw that the man was far out in the lake, waving his arms.

“Are you OK?” he asked again, louder this time. When the man responded with a feeble “Help!” Elder Faiese pulled off his shoes and emptied his pockets. He hesitated because he was about to break a mission rule: no missionaries allowed in the water. But this looked like a matter of life or death. So he waded in and began to swim.

While growing up on Upolu Island in Samoa, Faiese loved to swim and spent most of his time on the beach. As he approached the drowning man, he noticed that the middle-aged Asian’s eyes were filled with terror and his mouth was filled with water. The man suddenly jumped on Faiese’s back and grabbed tightly around his neck with both arms. Faiese was in trouble. He couldn’t swim with the man on his back and he couldn’t seem to communicate with him.

“Then I remembered those long ago Scouting lessons,” said Faiese. “I tugged hard to get him off my back and then pulled him under my left arm, clutching him there while I swam back to shore with my right arm.”

On shore another man had noticed the struggle and helped Faiese get the man up to the walkway.

“I saw that the guy wasn’t breathing and I remembered another Scouting lesson,” Elder Faiese recalled. “I laid him down and turned him on his side. Water came gushing out of his mouth.”

The other man used Elder Faiese’s cell phone to call 911 and soon, help arrived.

“I was wet and freezing. My companion came to check on me about the time the ambulance left,” said Faiese. “I had only been gone for a little while, but so much had happened! We went home, I changed my clothes and soon we were working at another service project.”

That evening the reality that he had saved a life hit home. Because he had decided to serve a mission, he had been in the right place at the right time, with the strength and skills that were needed. The day that had started out so routine had been, in fact, a day like no other.

The Life and Teachings of Jesus Christ and his Apostles

Go to the page where this comes from HERE

(17-6) Must a True Disciple Make a Choice between the Kingdom of God and the World?

Concerning the need to choose, Elder Neal A. Maxwell of the First Quorum of the Seventy, has written the following:

“There is a special sense of urgency infusing itself into many Church members everywhere that says, quietly, but insistently—this is the time for us to choose! It is not just that God will insist that we choose for our own sake, but that those who depend upon us, or use us as a reference point, need and deserve to know which way we are going. It is no good posing as a lifeguard if one is a non-swimmer. It is no good being a guide if one leaves his post and wanders with the multitude in search of another way, ‘for there is none other way,’ especially at a time when there is a sharper and sharper divergence in the way of the world and the straight and narrow way. The disciple must not only stand in ‘holy places’ but on holy issues and ‘not be moved.’

“In short, the events of our time and spiritual decay in the world have produced for us the equivalent situation faced by many of the disciples who followed Jesus. They followed him until he began to preach the ‘hard sayings’—the doctrines that really demand not only belief, but performance; doctrines which would distinguish them from their contemporary society. The Lord wants us to put some distance—behaviorally—between ourselves and the world, not because we love mankind less, but precisely because we do love men. It is for the world’s sake that we must sanctify ourselves. When Jesus’ followers faced their moment of truth, John records, ‘From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.’ Jesus turned to the remainder and queried them, ‘Will ye also go away?’ (John 6:66–67.)” (A Time to Choose, pp. 39–40.)

Nearly two hundred years before the public ministry of Jesus began, Antiochus Epiphanes, a Selucidian king who controlled Palestine, attempted to destroy Judaism by compelling his subjects to accept the Greek culture. In a show of utter contempt for the Jewish faith, Antiochus sacrificed a pig (the filthiest of animals, according to the Jews) upon a small Greek altar built for the occasion within the temple confines. Following this, Antiochus prohibited all religious ordinances enjoined by the law of Moses and ordered the burning of all known copies of the Jewish law. Finally, he ordered that heathen altars be constructed throughout Palestine and that the Jews worship the heathen gods or suffer death. This suppression of the Jewish religion precipitated what is known as the Maccabean revolution.

Judas Maccabaeus, together with his four brothers, gathered about him a number of devout Jews who refused to honor the demands of Antiochus. They formed a guerilla army and waged relentless war against the troops employed by Antiochus to enforce his religious policies. Eventually, the Maccabees seized control of Jerusalem. Judas then proceeded to purify the temple (which for three years had been used to make offerings to Zeus) and restore the worship of Jehovah. The Feast of Dedication, sometimes called the Feast of Lights, or Hanukkah, was inaugurated to celebrate the recovery and rededication of the Jewish temple. The feast takes place in the month of Chislev, corresponding to portions of our months of November and December, and lasts for eight days. It is marked by elaborate meals, special synagogue services, and extra illumination in all homes. Hence its title, “Feast of Lights.” (See Harper’s Bible Dictionary, pp. 133, 406–7.)

LDS web Sites of Interest

Liahona  -  1977 to Present 

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/magazines/liahona?lang=eng

Ensign – 1971 to 2020
https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/magazines/ensign-19712020?lang=eng

Of SPECIAL INTEREST - 

1973 October Ensign  Special Issue: Old Testament, Exodus to Malachi
This is one of the GREASTEST issues.  GREAT GREAT articles - Don't miss this opportunity to study the OLD TESTAMONT with some of the great masters!!

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/1973/10?lang=eng

2011 October Ensign - BofM Special Issue

Another GREAT to use for your Book of Mormon Study

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/2011/10/contents?lang=eng

Preach My Gospel - A Guide to Missionary Service
https://www.lds.org/manual/preach-my-gospel-a-guide-to-missionary-service?lang=eng

OLD SS MANUALS for the youth:

Preparing For Exaltation Teacher's Manual

This manual was taught to the 13-14 year old before Come Follow Me

Truly GREAT lessons to use to teach your children in FHE or anytime, really!!  

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/bc/content/shared/content/english/pdf/31384_PreparingforExaltation/PreparingForExaltation_31384_eng.pdf

These two manuals were taught every 2 years for the youths first years in SS - These are TRULY great lessons!!

Presidents of the Church

This manual was also part of the first year of SS for the 13-14 year old before Come Follow Me.

Sunday School Lessons for teens - their first year.

More truly GREAT material you could use for FHE or again, anytime!

- includes a short biographical sketch, Basic Facts, A Quote from Them,
and also their signature (except for the last two prophets).

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/bc/content/shared/content/english/pdf/language-materials/32479_eng.pdf

THE LIFE AND TEACHINGS OF JESUS AND HIS APOSTLES

The "Life and Teachings of Jesus Christ and His Apostles" is a course typically found within New Testament studies or biblical studies curricula. Specifically, it often forms a core part of introductory courses on the New Testament, often focusing on the Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) as the primary source material. 

This is truly GREAT material you could use for FHE or any time.  

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/bc/content/shared/content/english/pdf/language-materials/32474_eng.pdf

These are NOT official LDS sites . . . 

Just someone who has made all this info available:

The first and last talks given by the prophets,

Starting with Ezra Tqft Benson.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMB3CKATBWE&ab_channel=JacobHill

Chronological List of the Apostles of The Lord, Jesus Christ, in this Dispensation
http://www.moroni10.com/apostles-chronology.html

David O McKay to BYU President-1966

Direction from Pres. McKay to the BYU president which is much more detailed and specific than I had thought. I am aware that the "academic freedom" movement, whether it should have or not, had some impact in the opposite direction. I wonder therefore, what is the status of the Prophet's and the Church Board of Education direction to BYU now. Thanx for this. This is a keeper document for present and future reference  

 From David O. McKay
Dec. 22,  1966

Dear President Wilkinson:

In recent years I have felt a  growing anxiety concerning the larger role which I feel the Brigham Young  University should play in proclaiming those principles which are necessary  to preserve the Constitution and the blessings of freedom among mankind. I  have always been impressed by the Lord’s statement that the substantive  ingredients of the Constitution were not only divinely inspired but were  designed for the “protection of all flesh, according to just and holy  principles.” These inspired concepts were not
merely intended for the  people of the United States, but for all humanity. Therefore, these  principles need to be promoted, perpetuated, defended and taught as part  of the message of the restored Kingdom of God.

Up to this time I  do not feel that the Brigham Young University fulfilled its responsibility  as the leading educational instrument of the Church in proclaiming these  principles. The reports which I have received would indicate that far too  much time is being spent in some of the classes deprecating the very  principles which God has enjoined upon the Priesthood of this Church to  defend, promulgate and propagate for the general welfare and liberty of  mankind.

I feel that the University departments devoted to  economics, political science and history have no reason to exist as part  of a Church institution of higher learning unless they are supporting the  Church in fulfilling its responsibility to preserve and implement our free  and open society and resist those who would collectivize the material  resources of the earth as a means of subjugating our Father’s  children.

I fear some of our fine Latter-day Saint scholars have  become seriously confused as to the position of the Church in these  matters and they have therefore become apologetic or even hostile to the  very precepts which the Lord has endorsed to the Church as the custodian  and depository of His revealed will in these last days. I know from  conversations with some of these teachers and scholars that they are  extremely earnest and sincere, but that will not excuse the fact that when  they transmit their confusion to the rising generation of Latter-day  Saints they are defeating or debilitating an important phase of the work  of the Church. In fact, they are vitiating an important and highly vital  part of the very mission which the Church was restored to fulfill.

Now, I recognize that these teachers are free agents and they are  entitled to their opinions. Nevertheless, they are not entitled to  proclaim private opinions in a Church educational institution when those  opinions militate against the purposes, objectives and obligations of the  Church. This would be comparable to excusing a Church missionary who  decided to promulgate the defective doctrines of certain secular churches  in preference to our own. As an individual he is welcome to believe  anything he wishes, but he could no longer legitimately pretend to be an  emissary of the Lord’s restored Kingdom. Nor can those whose intellectual  pursuits have led them to abandon the Lord’s position on economic freedom,  the dispersion of political authority and the sanctity of private  property, be allowed to receive his wages from the carefully garnered  tithes of the Church when they profess to subscribe to doctrines which  contain the seeds of ruthless
dictatorship and Satanic compulsion–the  very doctrines which we rejected as a human family in the First  Estate.

I therefore desire that a number of policies be made  effective at the Brigham Young University just as rapidly as circumstances  will permit and that thereafter they should be put into effect throughout  the entire Church educational system.

First, all curriculum&#  39;s relating to economics, political science and history should be  immediately reviewed and revised so that hereafter all classes will  present in a positive, forthright manner the advantages of an open and  free society over that of a culture which is characterized by strong and  continuous intervention of government in the lives and affairs of the  people.

Second, it should be emphasized as a fundamental tenet of  the Church that we believe in honoring and sustaining Constitutional  principles and that “sustaining” a government requires the honest citizen  to be alert to the machinations of the enemies of freedom and actively  participate in defending those principles which God has revealed to be  divinely inspired.

Third, as a matter of policy as well as  principle, University classes should stress the desirability of solving  problems and settling issues through the peaceful, constitutional channels  established by law and conscientiously resist the current trend to use the  street as a public arena where anonymity and mobocracy inevitably combine  to spread hysteria and terror.

Fourth, studies of Communism.  Socialism and other forms of collectivism should be thoroughly explored in  all their economic, political and social ramifications with the specific  objective in mind of demonstrating why the Lord and His appointed leaders  have rejected these techniques of political domination and economic  control. I would like to see the students of the Brigham Young University  become a cadre of ideological pioneers comparable to the American founding  fathers who inspired a passion for liberty and a hope for freedom in the  hearts of men throughout the earth. In our day and age this needs to be  done again. The failures of Communism and Socialism have left a  disillusioned and frustrated humanity hungering for a leadership which  will show them a better way. The Brigham Young University must become the  world center for the producing of such a leadership. And this can only be  accomplished when teachers and classes are provided for the
specific  purpose of preparing students for this leadership role. So far, this has  not been done and precious time is being lost. Steps should therefore be  taken to remedy this situation immediately.

Fifth, a whole battery  of extensive research projects should be launched on the graduate level to  discover the most efficient and economical devices for the solution of  current problems. The object should be to discover solutions which will  not do violence to the inalienable rights of man the way the collectivist  programs have done. In fact, if liberty-loving men had remained alert and  sought these solutions earlier, there would have been far less likelihood  that the modern causers would have found an open door into which they  could thrust their collectivist foot.

In connection with this  suggested research, I have in mind such things as a study in depth of  problems involving medical care for the aged; sound retirement security  programs; the improvement in the quantity and quality of education; the  systematizing and simplifying of the law; the best procedures for the  keeping of the peace, both domestically and between nations; the best  procedures for the wise expenditures of funds to aid the poor so that they  can retain their dignity and expeditiously assert their self-sufficiency  as independent members of society.

In other words, no area of human  suffering, maladjustment or iniquity should be considered beyond the pale  of the University’s problem-solving team. I feel that the Socialistic and  other collectivist answers to these problems have not only proven  inadequate but too often they have degraded and corrupted the very people  they were supposed to be helping. There are better solutions to be found  within the framework of freedom and the Lord will show his servants the  way if they will but gird themselves to the exploratory task which each  problem involves. The day must come when the Elders of Zion have found the  answers to the social, economic and political problems of the world. When  they do, the words of Isaiah will be fulfilled which said, “And many  people shall go and say, Come ye, let us go up to the mountain of the  Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways,  and we will walk in his paths...” I am anxious that
the youth of Zion  shall prepare themselves for this kind of leadership and eventually  initiate the magnificent pattern of righteous living which prophets of God  have warmly contemplated since the beginning of human history.

Of  course, I appreciate that not everyone who is presently enrolled in the  teaching profession of the Church educational system has either the  background or convictions to enthusiastically support this enlarged  assignment which the Brigham Young University must carry from this point  onward. This, therefore, brings me to my final point.

Sixth, it  should be the responsibility of the Church school administration to see  that any member of the professional staff whose training or personal  opinions are out of harmony with this basic program which I have briefly  outlined, should be replaced as soon as possible by personnel who are  competent to perform the educational functions required. This may result  in some complaints, but I do not consider them justified in view of the  task which lies before us. They are particularly unjustified when they  come from those persons whose teaching inadequacies have created the  necessity for a special remedial program of the extensive proportions I  have described.

All phases of this new program should be initiated  at the earliest possible date and frequent progress reports should keep me  advised of its advancement.

A Stake President Reviews 2012 -

  A stake president reviews 2012….

Mathew S. De Visser
Stake President Sandy Utah Hidden Valley Stake
Best Stake Conference I Ever Attended

On Sunday we had the best stake conf I've ever attended. The Stake President was the concluding speaker. Below is his talk exactly as he emailed it to me today. Sorry for the length but there was nothing I could cut out of it. It was that good.
Stake Conference General Session Talk: 2/3/13

President De Visser:

My dear brothers and sisters, it has been a wonderful conference weekend. I have been inspired by those who have shared their stories and testimonies. I have been equally inspired by the music. I have learned that it is not an easy thing to plan a stake conference. Much fasting, prayer, and deliberation go into it and I have felt the spirit of the Lord guide me in selecting our speakers and topics. I express my appreciation to those who have participated. The spirit of the Lord has been with us in abundance, and I pray that it will continue to be with us as I now address you. 

Another year has come and gone, but not just any year – it was the year 2012. A year about which much was speculated, predicted, and some would even argue prophesied. And while the most discussed prediction or prophecy – that of the Mayans concerning the end of the world – did not come to pass, I feel and believe that 2012 will still prove to be one of the more significant years in our life time.

Let’s take a moment and look back at a few things that happened in 2012: 

      - Gaza fired missiles on Jerusalem causing heightened unrest in the Middle East 

      - The Director of the CIA, a man considered to be of the highest moral integrity, 

              resigned due to improprieties and adultery

      - The UN Ambassador was instructed by the White House to cover up what
            happened in Libya, attempting to minimize the deaths of four Americans
            who were murdered                    

      - There was an attempt to raise taxes during the worst economic times since
             the great depression
      - Hurricane Sandy, called the “perfect storm” hit the east coast causing
             great devastation
      - Iran became closer to a nuclear weapon
      - The use of marijuana was legalized in Washington and Colorado
      - Some states legalized same sex marriage
      - 23 states began a petition to secede from the nation
      - Russia strengthened its coalitions with North Korea and Iran
      - Forces aligned to stop school prayer, but allowed the handing out of birth control
      - The government used tax dollars to fund abortions
      - Examples of violence, gambling, drug misuse, and infidelity were more
               prevalent than ever
      - Hollywood promoted parenthood without marriage
      - Education scores of our youth plummeted to their lowest levels ever
      - And finally, we were brought to the edge of the fiscal cliff - 

In my opinion, the first 30 days of 2013 have proven to be the same. In fact, my head is spinning at all of the insanity and craziness that is happening in the world. - Now, I want to make it clear that it is not my intent today to be controversial, political, or even dire. My intent is to state the facts as I see them, as the Stake President, having been moved upon by the Holy Ghost. When I speak from this pulpit as the Stake President, the primary intent of my voice is one of love and compassion, but I also have an obligation to use my voice as a warning when it is necessary. Today is a day when I choose to use it primarily as a voice of warning hoping you will realize and understand that it is in love and compassion for you that I do. Each of us has our agency and we are free to act for ourselves. We are agents unto ourselves and each of us is free to take what I say as he or she will. You may choose to disagree with me. You may even choose to ignore me, but I have been impressed by the spirit to say what I must say. Never in my life have I witnessed a more stark difference between good and evil than I did in 2012. Never has there been a greater moral, economic, or political decline in society, than there was in 2012 and over the last few years. These climates combined, were as bad in 2012 as they have ever been in the history of the world. The current moral condition of our world and country reminds me of the condition described in Helaman, chapter 5, verse 2, and I quote:

             “For their laws and their governments were established by the voice of the
               people, and they who chose evil were more numerous than they who
               chose good, therefore they were ripening with destruction, for the laws
               had become corrupted.”       End quote. 

In 2012 the voice of the people spoke loudly and clearly as it chose:
      - Socialism over capitalism
      - Entitlements over free enterprise
      - Redistribution and regulation over self reliance Unfortunate as it is, this should not
            come as a surprise to any of us who have spent the better part of our lives as
            members of this church. 

The scriptures and the prophets have warned us for hundreds of years, and have been trying to prepare us for this time. The scriptural and modern-day prophesies we have read and heard throughout our lives are no longer prophesies to us – they are now our living reality. Let me take a moment and share with you a few of the scriptural and modern-day prophesies and quotes that I find interesting and revealing.

First, on November 9th, 2012 (just a few months ago) the First Presidency issued the following statement: 

          “We invite Americans everywhere, whatever their political persuasion, 

           to pray for the President, for his administration and the new Congress as they 

           lead us through difficult and turbulent times. May our national leaders reflect 

           the best in wisdom and judgment as they fulfill the great trust afforded to 

           them by the American people.” 

The most glaring part of this statement, to me, is the acknowledgement from our prophet and the First Presidency that we are living in difficult and turbulent times.

Now, listen carefully to these two quotes. To me, these quotes are fascinating, and they reflect the ability of our leaders to see and predict the future. In 1976 (this statement was made over 35 years ago) while serving as a President of the Seventy, Neal A. Maxwell said the following: 

           “I fear, that, as conditions worsen, many will react to the failures of too much 

            government by calling for even more government. Then there will be more 

            and more lifeboats launched, because fewer and fewer citizens know how
            to swim. Unlike some pendulums, political pendulums do not swing back
            automatically; they must be pushed. History is full of instances when people
            have waited in vain or  pendulums to swing back”. 

In 1966 (this statement was made over 45 years ago) while serving as an apostle, 

Howard W. Hunter said this:

           “The government will take from the “haves” and give to the “have nots.” 

             [When this happens] Both have lost their freedom. Those who “have,” lost 

             their freedom to give voluntarily of their own free will and in the way they desire. 

             Those who “have not”, lost their freedom because they did not earn what they 

             received. They got “something for nothing,” and they will neither appreciate the 

             gift nor the giver of the gift”. 

Now I quote from 2 Timothy chapter 3, verses 1-4:

          “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall 

           be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers,
           disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce
           breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,
           traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God”. 

Sound familiar? It does to me, and as the Stake President, I not only see it happening throughout the world, but I also see it happening right here in our stake. These conditions described by Paul concerning the wickedness of the last days, are being realized right before my very eyes. As the Stake President, I see and hear all manner of sin – violence, crime, alcohol and drug abuse, and immorality of every kind. I believe there are not many things left for my eyes to see and my ears to hear. Evil is escalating at an alarming pace even here at home. Just as the Savior prophesied concerning the conditions in the world that would precede his Second Coming: “iniquity does abound, the love of men does wax cold” (JS-Matt. 1:30) and “all things are in commotion; and surely, men’s hearts do fail them, for fear has come upon all people” (D&C 88:91). 

I now quote Elder Bednar in a talk he gave one day after the tragic events that occurred only 45 days ago in Connecticut. He said:

              “We live in a world that grows increasingly confused and chaotic - ever more 

               evil and dark. Nothing could have emphasized that truth more than the tragic 

               events that occurred yesterday in Connecticut.” 

With his comments, Elder Bednar also quoted recent comments made by President Packer, who said: 

                      “The world is spiraling downward at an ever-quickening pace.” 

Now, pay close attention to this next sentence brothers and sisters –
President Packer said: 

                                “I am sorry to tell you that it will not get better.”

President Packer goes on to say: 

              “I know of nothing in the history of the Church, or in the history of the world 

               to compare with our present circumstances. Nothing happened in Sodom and 

               Gomorrah which exceeds in wickedness and depravity that which surrounds 

               us now. Words of profanity, vulgarity, and blasphemy are heard everywhere. 

               Unspeakable wickedness and perversion were once hidden in dark places;
               now they are in the open, and even accorded legal protection. At Sodom
               and Gomorrah these things were localized. Now, they are spread across
               the world, and they are among us”. 

Brothers and Sisters, as I said last year during Ward Conferences – “we are in the count down.” 

Again, I say to you, that the scriptural and modern-day prophesies we have read and heard all throughout our lives are no longer prophesies to us – they are now our living reality. If there was ever a time in the history of the world for a people to wake up, pay attention, and get it together – now is that time. This is a defining moment for us, and we cannot delay. We need to get our temporal and spiritual houses in order. It is a must. Difficult times are still ahead and we need to be prepared. In my opinion, the last 5 years have put us on notice, and they should serve as a wake-up call in both temporal and spiritual matters. All throughout my life I have been counseled by our church leaders to live within my means and get out of debt. In fact, there was no topic talked about more by President Hinckley, during his time as the Prophet, than living within our means and getting out of debt. As I look back on the last 5 years, it is no wonder to me why he did. We experienced the worst economic, political, and spiritual times in the history of our country, and even globally. The words of President Packer during his visit to our stake 4 years ago still ring loudly in my ears when he mentioned this topic and warned us, by saying: 

            “This time is different. We have not experienced this in the past.
              This time it is global,  and it will be deeper and last longer than
              anything we have economically and spiritually experienced.”

Today, it is easy for us to reflect upon his words and know that he was right. Many of us would be better served today if we had taken his warning more seriously. For example, from 2008 to 2009 our stake experienced a 150% increase in welfare assistance to its own members. That assistance stayed about the same during 2010 and 2011. In 2012 we saw some improvement, and I am happy to report that we are now only 70% above our pre 2009 level of assistance. While there are some of us who could have done better, all in all, I commend you brothers and sisters. We are one of a few stakes in the entire church that remained a Fast Offering Giver rather than a Fast Offering Receiver during this time – meaning that we were able to meet the temporal needs of our own members and still have a surplus to pass on to the church to assist other stakes. I also want to commend you for following the counsel of your priesthood leader to prayerfully consider a more generous Fast Offering. It is overwhelming to me that during this temporal meltdown you have risen to the occasion and given more generously. I am very pleased to report that over the past 4 years our fast offering contributions have increased by 11%. This is amazing, especially since we now have 1,000 members less in our stake than we did in 2008. So, I thank you brothers and sisters. You are wonderful and I promise the Lord will continue to bless you as you continue to give generously. 

Now, while temporal and economic conditions appear to be getting somewhat better, let us not kid ourselves about what is really going on. Any improvement is only temporary, and the conditions we have experienced over the last 5 years will eventually and certainly return, and even get worse. Let us not forget the last 5 years, and let us learn from it. Let us all finally follow the counsel of our prophets to live within our means and get out of debt. It is possible to get out of debt if we live within our means, but it is not if we don’t. Now, not only is temporal preparedness vital for our mortal existence, but it also sets the stage for us to be spiritually prepared. The most important matter for us to consider right now and always is our spiritual preparedness. Over the past 4 years, it has been a wonderful exercise for me to call upon the Lord for guidance and direction concerning this stake, and in particular the setting of stake goals. It has been an interesting evolution to witness. Let me share with you part of a statement we prepared for all of us this year (a copy of which can be obtained from your bishop):

            “As the Stake Presidency discussed, pondered, and prayed about our stake 

            goals for 2013, we were impressed by the feeling that goals should be a matter 

            of focus and commitment at a personal level.
             In conjunction with this direction, we encourage each individual member to set 

             their own goal based on the following question:

             What goal can I make that will bring me closer to the Savior?

Let me repeat:

We encourage each individual member to set their own goal based on the following question:

What goal can I make that will bring me closer to the Savior? We trust that as you prayerfully consider and ponder this question, it will be clear to you what your goal should be. We also testify that your personal commitment and discipline to fulfill this goal will indeed bring you closer to the Savior and will give you spiritual strength to remain firm and steadfast in the gospel regardless of the circumstances. We are impressed to share with you one goal you might consider, as you ponder the question: What goal can I make that will bring me closer to the Savior?

                        Spend time each day reading and studying the Book of Mormon.

Two others which are not in the statement but which I would like to also suggest are:

                  1) Don’t let a day go by in your life when you do not humbly and sincerely

                      kneel before God to thank Him for your blessings and plead with Him to 

                      give you the spiritual strength to meet the challenges which are coming.
                  2) Perform a spiritual self examination. Examine every aspect of your life. 

                      Identify those things for which you need to repent and then do it. 

                      Simply put, focus on your own personal worthiness.

In the end, the only things that will matter will be our personal worthiness and our relationships, especially the one we have with the Savior. 

Brothers and Sisters, President Packer was absolutely right when he said: 

                        “I am sorry to tell you that it will not get better.” 

As difficult as it may be to embrace, it is simply God’s plan. The moral, economic, and political conditions of the world will not, overall, get better. You and I were held back for this special time to prepare the earth for the return of the Savior. I believe many within the sound of my voice will be part of, and witnesses to, all of the events that will transpire prior to the return of the Savior. This will require each of us to be temporally and spiritually stronger than we are currently. In closing let me share a quote from Heber C. Kimball:

                “The time is coming when we will be mixed up in these now peaceful valleys 

                 to the extent that it will be difficult to tell the face of a Saint, from the face of 

                 an enemy to the people of God. Then, brothers and sisters, look out for the
                 great sieve, for there will be a great sifting time, and many will fall; for I say
                 unto you there is a test, a TEST, a TEST is coming, and who will be able
                 to stand?  This church and each member of it has before it many close places
                 through which it will have to pass before the work of God is crowned with
                 victory. To meet the difficulties that are coming, it will be necessary for you
                 to be temporally and spiritually prepared, and have a knowledge of the truth
                 of this work for yourselves. The difficulties will be of such a character that
                 the man or woman who does not possess these things will fall.” 

Brothers and sisters, the test has come. It is now upon us. No man or woman will be able to endure what is happening now, or what is ahead, if we are not temporally and spiritually prepared. If you are not, you will not stand. I love you brothers and sisters. I testify to you that I speak the truth. I have a personal witness of the Savior and I know that He lives. He is the Son of Almighty God. He will return in glory and He will sustain us through the difficult times ahead if we do our part and are temporally and spiritually prepared. 

And, I say these things, in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.